Ventricular involvement in experimental Hemophilus influenzae meningitis
Daum, R.S.; Scheifele, D.W.; Syriopoulou, V.P.; Averill, D.; Smith, A.L.
Journal of Pediatrics 93(6): 927-930
1978
ISSN/ISBN: 0022-3476 PMID: 102754 Document Number: 125915
The frequency of ventricular involvement during H. influenzae (HIB) type b meningitis in 10 bacteremic infant rhesus monkeys was determined. Meningitis was defined as CSF obtained from the lumbar subarachnoid space or cisterna magna containing bacteria and 10 or more leukocytes/mm3. HIB were cultured from 22 of 22 ventricular CSF samples. In 17 of 18 comparisons of bacterial density in ventricular and cisternal CSF, the values were within 1 log10; similarly, 5 of 8 quantitative ventricular-lumbar comparisons were within 1 log10. This concordance was present at bacterial densities of 2 .times. 101 to 1 .times. 109 CFU/ml. When discordance was present, the ventricular CSF contained more bacteria. In 15 of 20 comparisons of leukocyte density in ventricular and cisternal CSF, the ventricular pleocytosis was lower (mean ventricular/cisternal ratio 0.08) Infection of the lateral cerebral ventricle is a uniform feature of HIB meningitis in infant monkeys, but the cellular inflammatory component is less.